Macron’s Approval Rating Drops 10 Percent

According to a poll released on Sunday, Macron’s popularity has slumped 10 points

The popularity of French President Emmanuel Macron has decreased for 10 percentage points, showed a poll released on Sunday.

Macron’s rating fell from 64 to 54 percent over the past month. Macron, who became France’s youngest head of state in modern history, has enjoyed high approval ratings during his first months in office.

After a comfortable victory over Front National‘s Marine Le Pen in the presidential run-off in May, Macron’s movement En Marche, won most seats in the legislative election, which gave Macron a room to implement his policies.

However, he has suffered criticism over proposed budged cuts, which resulted in a row with France’s Chief of Staff who resigned due to his disagreement with Macron.

According to an Ifop poll carried out for Journal du Dimanche newspaper, the number of French people satisfied with his performance fell 10 points from 64 percent in June.

During the presidential campaign, Macron was regarded in some circles as a potentially weak President, while his presidential rival Marine Le Pen hinted that Macron’s leadership would result in France being ruled by German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

After he took the reins of power and entered the Elysee Palace, Macron put a great amount of effort into building an image of a strong leader. This became apparent in his meetings with Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump, as well as his handling of the row with his Chief of Staff.

“I have made commitments, I am your boss,” Macron added to an audience of dozens of top army officers and their families.

In contrast to his predecessor Francois Hollande, who suffered abysmal approval ratings during most of his term, Macron has been trying to be an image of authority.

His official portrait – which sparked some controversy in France – was slightly larger (and more expensive) from those of his predecessors, and is indicative of Macron’s attempts to present himself in the best possible tradition of the Fifth Republic, where the President has been described as a modern-day monarch.